Movie · 1985 · Action, Adventure, Science Fiction · 1h 47m · PG-13 · English
Curator score: 2.9/10 (323.2K ratings)
Hold out for Mad Max. This is his greatest adventure.
Overview
Mad Max becomes a pawn in a decadent oasis of a technological society, and when exiled, becomes the deliverer of a colony of children.
Ratings
Curator score: 2.9/10
IMDb: 6.2/10
Letterboxd: 2.97/5
Rotten Tomatoes: 80%
Metacritic: 71
TMDB: 6.2/10
Director
George Miller, George Ogilvie
Production
Kennedy Miller Productions
Cast
Mel Gibson, Tina Turner, Helen Buday, Bruce Spence, Angelo Rossitto, Adam Cockburn, Frank Thring, Paul Larsson, Angry Anderson, Robert Grubb, George Spartels, Edwin Hodgeman, Bob Hornery, Andrew Oh, Ollie Hall, Lee Rice, Tushka Bergen, Tom Jennings, Rebekah Elmaloglou, Mark Spain
Curator Review
Verdict
A visually inventive, uneven third Mad Max entry that swaps some of the series’ savage momentum for a more mythic, kid-adventure structure. The production design, Bartertown, and Tina Turner’s larger-than-life presence are the big draws, but the tonal shift is divisive and the action is less relentless than fans may want.
Best for
Viewers who like post-apocalyptic worldbuilding and eccentric production design
Fans of 1980s action movies with a campy, pop-art edge
People open to a more family-friendly, mythic detour in a harsh franchise
Anyone curious about a cult sequel that’s more interesting than it is fully successful
Skip if
You want the hardest, leanest version of Mad Max-style action
You dislike tonal whiplash between grim apocalypse and kid-movie whimsy
You need constant chase sequences and sustained violence
You are allergic to camp, broad performances, or 1980s synth-pop spectacle
Overview
Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome is the franchise’s strangest pivot: part wasteland epic, part fairy tale, part studio-era spectacle. The opening stretch in Bartertown is the movie at its best, with a vivid sense of social decay, sharp visual invention, and a nasty little power structure that feels both comic and brutal.
Worth noting
What makes it divisive is also what makes it memorable. The film keeps drifting toward a more sentimental, child-centered adventure, which softens the ferocity that defined the earlier entries. Some viewers will miss the stripped-down momentum, but the movie still has a strong sense of design and a willingness to be weird in public.
Bottom line
Tina Turner gives the film its glamor and authority, and the action set pieces are staged with enough imagination to keep the world alive even when the story gets uneven. It’s not the essential Mad Max film, but it is a fascinating one: a big, odd, highly watchable detour with real visual personality.
Top Letterboxd reviews
James (Schaffrillas) (2.5★) · 2670 likes
The first Mad Max movie that screams "from the director of Happy Feet"
Matt Singer (2.5★) · 1916 likes
A+ for production design, car chases, Mel Gibson's hair, “We Don't Need Another Hero,” and Tina Turner's costumes.
D- for turning one of the bleakest franchises in film history into a kid's cartoon, complete with wacky character names, cutesy gibberish language, and lil' rascals banging baddies in the face with frying pans.
Rena MJ (2★) · 1520 likes
A town run entirely on pig shit is one of the best metaphors for Hollywood I've seen in a while.
john (2.5★) · 1024 likes
I'm so brave for watching all three of these movies before watching Fury Road.